Saharan Dust Plume Moves Away from Barbados, More Expected

Although the thick plume of Saharan dust that blanketed Barbados over the weekend has moved away from the island, international atmospheric scientists are warning that additional dust could reach the region in the coming days.

Mark Parrington, senior scientist with the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS), in an exclusive with this newspaper said the dust event that affected Barbados forms part of a much larger trans-Atlantic phenomenon that stretched thousands of miles from the west coast of Africa to the Caribbean basin.

The plume was tracked by CAMS (Copernicus is the European Union’s Earth Observation Programme), using satellite observations and atmospheric modelling, with data showing significant impacts across the Lesser Antilles, Puerto Rico, Cuba, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Jamaica and the Cayman Islands.

“Our latest forecast shows that most of the plume has already cleared Barbados, but dust is still continuing to cross the Atlantic and more could be reaching the island this weekend and into next week. It does look as though the concentrations could be lower than the most recent plume,” Parrington said.

While the hazy skies that blanketed Barbados sparked concern among residents, Parrington noted that the event itself was not unusual by regional standards.

Main concerns

“The size of the plume and concentrations of dust are consistent with dust plumes we have monitored reaching the Caribbean over past years,” he said.

One of the main concerns associated with the dust plume is the increased concentration of PM10 particles, microscopic airborne particles capable of penetrating the respiratory system.

“Our forecasts, particularly of PM10 concentration at ground level, have been showing high concentrations reaching the Caribbean region and resulting in degraded air quality,” Parrington said.

“PM10 represents all particulate matter with an average diameter of less than ten microns, which means they can affect people who suffer from asthma and respiratory illnesses.”

Although CAMS does not directly assess health impacts, Parrington said its forecasting systems could identify areas where dust concentrations exceed internationally recognised air-quality guidelines.

He explained that differences in the severity of impacts between Caribbean islands often come down to geography and atmospheric circulation.

“The relative impacts across the islands will be due to their locations relative to the wind patterns that are bringing the dust to the Caribbean,” he said.

The Barbados Meteorological Services (BMS) first alerted the public to the approaching plume on May 29, when it was located about 1 375 kilometres east of Barbados.

At the time, forecasters anticipated the highest concentrations would arrive on June 1, and reduce visibility to around ten kilometres.

However, updated modelling prompted the BMS to issue a Significant Dust Haze Advisory on May 30, after projections showed the plume would arrive earlier than originally expected.